Unless otherwise indicated herein, the approaches described in this section are not prior art to the claims in the present disclosure and are not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.
The rapidly growing portable electronics markets, e.g. cellular phones, laptop computers, and personal digital assistants (PDAs), are integral facets of modern life and each are operated by an integrated circuit (IC) with strict packaging demands. ICs have unique attributes which have significant impacts on manufacturing integration, in that they must be generally small, lightweight, rich in functionality, and they must be produced in high volumes at relatively low cost. For example, there is a demand for IC packages that are particularly well suited for use in devices that are small in size, such as small hand-held devices.
To meet such demand, manufacturers integrate increasingly more circuit functions, shrinking device features, and increasing speeds. As an extension of the IC industry, the electronics packaging industry is faced with similar technological and market dynamics. From a packaging perspective, smaller form factors, requirements for more input/output signals, and power management are major technology drivers. Sophisticated new products of all types are being developed, while barriers are continually being reached with conventional IC packages and processes.